Twenty-five years and forty-five years. Snoqualmie Falls, Washington.

Earthworms are all protein (N), and they excrete nitrogen. Live or die, they are great for the soil.

I often get a morning Facebook greeting from the gardeners - and from those who wake up too early. Sassy and I get up before dawn, but she goes back to sleep. To quote Shakespeare - "Would that it were day." That was what the French said just before being clobbered on St. Crispin's Day.

But we go out to win. We deliver Mr. Gardener's paper, so he has it at the door when he gets up. We often spot the Veteran at the end of the block. He offers to adopt Sassy each time. When we get back, we get bird seed ready, using a combination of sunflower seeds, nuts, corn, and other bird favorites. This increases the variety of birds feeding.

Mr. Gardener offered me free concrete blocks so I am going to expand the Jackson Bird Spa into the Jackson Animal Convention Center. The blocks offer lots of little pockets for food and shelter, more room on the top for foods.

Mrs. I asked if I put the muffins on the filing cabinet feeder outside. "Does Notre Dame play football?" I asked.

"No," she responded.

Water the microbes and they will transport water to the plants. Water storage in the soil? - Microbes and earthworms.

Earthworms
There has arisen a division among you about earthworms. Some fail to rightly distinguish one type from another.

Most are aware of dew worms, which have many other nicknames. They are often hunted at night by fishermen, armed with flashlights and quick reflexes. However, dew worms cannot be domesticated and raised in bins. They are deep diggers and must obey their created design.

One scientist has argued that vast areas of the world became fertile once the active earthworms spread by way of European settlers. Their boots, their plants, and their animals' hooves brought the egg cases to North and South America, making rich soil much more productive.

The Wormhaven Gardening Book deals with this in more detail. Click on the free PDF.

The red wiggler worm is not only a great fishing worm, but also the best at working soil, compost, and mulch.

Red wigglers will increase to their maximum numbers if properly fed with organic matter. God manages the details. We only need to add organic food on top. The worms pull down what they need. However, they do NOT like inorganic, chemical fertilizers, the stinky expensive stuff.

Put Down the N-P-K Bag and Support Your Local Earthworms
However, macro- and micro-arthropods (such as springtails and fungus-feeding mites) and worms, in particular, shun areas where there are synthetic fertilizers. They either don’t do well with these high concentrations or their food sources disappear. This further degrades the soil structure and the production of humus. In addition, mycorrhizal fungi and nitrogen-fixing bacteria do not form symbiotic relationships when there are high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus. Mycorrhizal fungi are the largest single source of carbon in soils, and nitrogen-fixing bacteria are a free source of nitrogen, a macronutrient most often in short supply. So, by maintaining a healthy soil food web, gardeners can get carbon, nitrogen, and other nutrients for their plants for free.

Lowenfels, Jeff;  (2013-05-07). Teaming with Nutrients: The Organic Gardener’s Guide to Optimizing Plant Nutrition (Kindle Locations 3228-3233). Timber Press. Kindle Edition. 

The process should fascinate any gardener, because it begins with micro-organisms we never see, their work leveraged by the hungry earthworms.

Worm castings, another “almost fertilizer,” but this time because it’s next to impossible to supply a guaranteed N–P–K analysis, also contain a lot of microbes. The worms ingest organic matter, but what they are really after are bacteria, protozoa, and fungi, some of which they digest. They process the rest of the material into castings with a higher concentration of organic matter and great N–P–K, as well as calcium, copper, zinc, and other minerals, than in the source material.

Lowenfels, Jeff; (2013-05-07). Teaming with Nutrients: The Organic Gardener’s Guide to Optimizing Plant Nutrition (Kindle Locations 3500-3503). Timber Press. Kindle Edition. 

You spent how much killing dandelion herbs, which are good for the soil and birds, and they returned again?

Earthworm Castings = Manure
Earthworm castings concentrate nutrients, which is why they are so popular with organic gardeners. They contain 10 times more potassium, 5 times more nitrogen, 7 times more phosphorus, 3 times more magnesium, 1.5 times more calcium, and 1.4 times more humus than the soil that went into the worm.


Lowenfels, Jeff; (2013-05-07). Teaming with Nutrients: The Organic Gardener’s Guide to Optimizing Plant Nutrition (Kindle Locations 3494-3496). Timber Press. Kindle Edition. 

Those castings may be on top of the soil, so some pea-brains kill earthworms to avoid the worm-poop. They must crawl through their grass to find it and become scandalized, like those offended when reading justification by faith or quotations from the Book of Concord on this blog.

The castings are also distributed through the soil, depending on the worms' habits. The tunneling aerates teh soil, which is good, and makes it easier for rain to penetrate the soil (clay) or to stay in the root zone (clay and sandy soil).

This land of gardeners.

Luther's Sermon on CONFESSION AND THE LORD’S SUPPER


This sermon was issued in 1524 — 1525 in eight editions in German and translated into Latin and issued in 1524. The second part on the “Use and Confession of Christian Liberty” was printed separately under the title: “Complete and Thorough Instruction, How one should act toward every person, to avoid giving offense especially as to fasting and the eating of meat, taught and preached by Martin Luther at Wittenberg, 1524.

German text: Erlangen edition II, 164; Walch II, 795; St. Louis II, 582.

CONTENTS:

CONFESSION AND THE LORD’S SUPPER.
I. CONFESSION AND THE LORD’ S SUPPER IN GENERAL.

1. What moved Luther to treat of this theme 1.

2. Whether we should force persons to go to confession and the Lord’s Supper on Easter 2-3.

II. CONFESSION AND THE LORD’ S SUPPER IN DETAIL.

A. The Confession.

1. The Confession we should make to God 4-5.

2. The confession we should make to our neighbor

3. Private confession a. That it is not commanded by God, but devised by the pope 7. b. That no one is to be forced to go to it, but still it is good and advisable to do so 7-8. c. To what should one especially have regard in private confession 9. d. The advantage one has from private confession 10-11. e. Whether one should make of private confession a work of compulsion and of necessity 11. f. How first of all faith is required for such confession 12. g. What we should confess in private confession 13.

B. The Holy Sacrament of  the Lord’s Supper.

1. How and why it is to be received under two forms 14.

2. How and why it is not with out persecution 15.

3. How and why one should here hold to faith in the Word 16-19.

4. How and why one should especially here strive to become a partaker of the fruit of the sacrament 20-21, 5. To what persons should the Lord’s Supper be administered 21-22.

6. This holy sacrament is grace and comfort to those hungry for grace, but to be impenitent poison and death

7. Of the fruit of the Lord’s Supper. a. The nature of this fruit 23-24. b. Whether believers can reach the highest perfection in this fruit 25- 26.

* A Christian should bear with the weaknesses of his neighbor, but not encourage them 26-27. c. The necessity of this fruit 28. d. How this fruit is a sign that one has worthily partaken of the sacrament 29f.

* How and why a Christian should bear with the weaknesses of his neighbor and show him love 31-34.

I. OF CONFESSION AND THE LORD’S SUPPER IN GENERAL.

1. Although I have often preached and written on the Lord’s Supper and Confession, yet annually the time appointed for the consideration of these subjects, for the sake of those who desire to commune, returns, and so we must review them in a summary and speak of them once more.

2. In the first place, I have often enough said that Christians are not obliged to commune on this particular festive day, but that they have the right and authority to come whenever they desire; for God established the office of the ministers for the purpose that they might at all times serve the people and provide them with God’s Word and the Sacraments. Therefore it is unchristian to force people under pain of committing mortal sin to commune just at this time; as has been done heretofore, and is still done in many places. For it is not and can not be in keeping with the Lord’s Supper to force or compel any one to partake of it; on the contrary, it is intended only for a hungry soul that compels itself and rejoices in being permitted to come; those who must be driven are not desired.

3. Therefore, until the present the devil has ruled with unrestrained power and authority through the pope, compelling him to drive and force the whole world to commune; and in fact, everybody did come running, like swine, because of the pope’s command. In this way so much dishonor and shame have been brought upon the Lord’s Supper, and the world has been so filled with sin that one is moved with compassion to think of it. But since we know these things we ought to let no command bind us, but to hold fast the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free. I say this for the sake of those who will not commune except at this time of the year, and who come only because of the custom and the common practice. There is, to be sure, no harm in coming at this Easter-festival, if only the conscience be free and not bound to the time, and is properly prepared to receive the Lord’s Supper.

II. OF CONFESSION.

4. In the second place, we must say the same thing concerning Confession.

First of all we know that the Scriptures speak of three kinds of confession.

The first is that which is made to God, of which the prophet David speaks in Psalm 32:5: “I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and my iniquity did I not hide: I said, I will confess my transgressions unto Jehovah; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin.” Likewise, in the preceding third verse David says: “When I kept silence, my bones wasted away as with the drought of summer ;” that is, before God no one is able to stand unless he come with this confession, as <19D004> Psalm 130:4 declares: “But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared ;” that is, whoever would deal with thee must deal so that this confession proceeds from his heart, which says: Lord, if thou be not merciful all is lost, no matter how pious I may be. Every saint must make this confession, as again we read in the Psalm mentioned, verse 6, “For this let everyone that is godly pray unto thee.”

Therefore, this kind of confession teaches us that we are all alike wicked and sinners, as the saying is, If one of us is good, all of us are good. If anyone have special grace, let him thank God and refrain from boasting.

Has anyone fallen into sin, it is because of his flesh and blood; nor has any fallen so low but that another who now stands may fall even lower.

Therefore, as far as we are concerned, there is no difference among us, the grace of God alone is dividing us.

5. This kind of confession is so highly necessary that it dare not cease for a moment, but must constitute the entire life of a Christian, so that without ceasing he praise the grace of God and reproach his own life in the eyes of God. Otherwise, if he dare to plead some good work or a good life before God, his judgment, which can tolerate nothing of the kind, would follow; and no one is able to stand before it. Therefore, this kind of confession must be made, that you may condemn yourself as worthy of death and the fire of hell; thus you will anticipate God so that he will not be able to judge and condemn you, but must show you mercy. Concerning this kind of confession, however, we will not speak at this time.

6. The second kind of confession is that made to our neighbor, and is called the confession springing from love, as the other is called the confession springing from faith. Concerning this kind of confession we read in Ja 5, 16: “Confess therefore your sins one to another.” In this confession, whenever we have wronged our neighbor, we are to acknowledge our fault to him, as Christ declares in Matthew 5:23-25: “If therefore thou art offering thy gift at the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee, leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. Agree with thine adversary quickly, while thou art with him in the way etc.” God here requires of both parties that he who hath offended the other ask forgiveness, and that he who is asked grant it. This kind of confession, like the former, is necessary and commanded; for God will be merciful to no one, nor forgive his sins, unless he also forgive his neighbor. In like manner, faith cannot be true unless it produce this fruit, that you forgive your neighbor, and that you ask for forgiveness; otherwise a man dare not appear before God. If this fruit is absent, faith and the first kind of confession are not honest.

7. The third kind of confession is that ordered by the pope, which is privately spoken into the ears of the priest when sins are enumerated. This confession is not commanded by God; the pope, however, has forced the people to it and, in addition, has invented so many kinds and varieties of sin that no one is able to keep them in mind; thus consciences have been troubled and tortured in a manner that is pitiful and distressing. Concerning this, however, we will say that God does not force you to confess by faith to him, or by love to your neighbor, when you have no desire to be saved and to receive his grace. Neither does he want you to make confession against your will and desire; on the contrary, he wants you to confess of your own accord, heartily, with love and pleasure. In like manner, he does not compel you to make a private confession to the priest when you have no desire of your own to do so, and do not long for absolution.

This the pope disregarded, and proceeded as though it were a part of the civil government requiring that force be employed; he did not inquire whether a person felt willing or not, but he simply issued the order, that whosoever does not confess at this time shall not have burial in the cemetery. But God cares not whether a thing is done or not, as long as it is not done with pleasure. It is better, therefore, to postpone a duty than to perform it unwillingly. For no one can come to God unless he come gladly and of his own free will; hence, no one can compel you to come. If you come because of the command and in order to show obedience to the pope, you do wrong. Yet it is the custom in the whole world that everybody runs to the Lord’s Supper solely because it is commanded; hence this is very properly called the week of torture, since in it the consciences of the people are tortured and tormented so that they are really to be pitied, besides the injury and destruction of souls. Moreover, Christ himself is also tortured far more shamefully than when he hung upon the cross. Therefore, we may well lift up our hands and thank God for giving us such light. For although we do not bear much fruit and amend, still we have the right knowledge. Hence, it is much better to stay away from confession and communion than to go unwillingly: then at least our consciences remain untortured.

8. Hence we say of private confession, that no one is compelled to observe it. Still it is for this reason a commendable and good thing. Wherever and whenever you are able to hear God’s Word you ought not to despise it, but receive it with heartfelt desire. Now, God has caused his Word to go forth through all the world, so that it fills every nook and corner, and wherever you go you find God’s Word. If I preach the forgiveness of sins, I preach the true Gospel. For the sum of the Gospel is: Whosoever believeth in Christ shall receive the forgiveness of his sins. Thus a Christian preacher cannot open his mouth unless he pronounces an absolution. Christ also does the same in the Gospel lesson when he says, “Pax vobiscum,” Peace be unto you. That is, I proclaim unto you, as of God, that you have peace and forgiveness of sins; this is even the Gospel itself, and absolution. So also the words of the Lord’s Supper, “This is my body which is given for you; this is my blood which is shed for you for the remission of sins etc.” If I were to say, I will not go to confession because I have the Word in the Lord’s Supper, I will be like him who declares, Neither am I going to hear the preaching. The Gospel must ring and echo without ceasing in every Christian’s mouth. Therefore we are to accept it with joy wherever and whenever we can hear it, lift up our hands, and thank God that we can hear it everywhere.

9. Therefore, when you go to private confession give more heed to the priest’s word than to your own confessing; and make this distinction, What you say is one thing, and what he says who hears you is another. Do not place much value on what you do, but give heed to what he says, to wit, that in God’s stead he proclaims to you the forgiveness of sins. It makes no difference whatever whether he be a priest, called to preach, or merely a Christian. The word which he speaks is not his, but God’s Word; and God will keep it as surely as if he had spoken it. This is the way he has placed his holy Word into every corner of the world. Since, therefore, we find it everywhere, we ought to receive it with great thankfulness, and not cast it to the winds.

10. For in Confession as in the Lord’s Supper you have the additional advantage, that the Word is applied to your person alone. For in preaching it flies out into the whole congregation, and although it strikes you also, yet you are not so sure of it; but here it does not apply to anyone except to you. Ought it not to fill your heart with joy to know a place where God is ready to speak to you personally? Yea, if we had a chance to hear an angel speak we would surely run to the ends of the earth. Are we not then foolish, wretched and ungrateful people not to listen to what is told us?

Here the Scriptures stand, and testify that God speaks through us, and that this is as valid as though he were to speak it with his own mouth; even as Christ declares in Matthew 18:20, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them;” again in John 20:23, “Whose soever sins ye forgive, they are forgiven unto them; whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.” Here God himself pronounces the absolution, just as he himself baptizes the child; and do you say we don’t need Confession? For although you hear the same thing in the Lord’s Supper you ought not on that account to reject it, especially since it applies to you, as already stated, personally.

11. Besides this you have another advantage, in Confession you are enabled to disclose all your failings and to obtain counsel regarding them.

And if there were no other reason, and God did not himself speak in Confession, I would not willingly give it up for this one reason, that here I am permitted to open my heart to my brother and tell him what troubles me. For it is a deplorable thing to have the conscience burdened and prostrate with fear, and to know neither counsel nor consolation.

This is why it is such an excellent and comforting thing for two to come together, and the one to offer advice, help and consolation to the other, proceeding in a fine brotherly and affectionate manner. The one reveals his ailment; whereupon the other heals his wounds. Therefore I would not give Confession up for all the treasure of the world. Still it dare not be made a command, lest it be turned into a matter of conscience, as though a person would not dare to commune without first making confession; nevertheless, we ought never to despise Confession, you cannot hear God’s Word too frequently, nor impress it so deeply upon your heart that it could not be done still better.

12. Therefore I said that confession and absolution must be carefully distinguished from each other, that you give attention chiefly to the absolution, and that you attend confession not because of the command, or in order to do a good work by your confessing, thinking that because of this good work your sins are forgiven; on the contrary, we are to go only because we there hear God’s Word and by it receive consolation. To this incline your ears, and be persuaded that God speaks through men and forgives you your sins; this, of course, requires faith.

Hitherto the manner of our Confession was as follows: when people were absolved so many works were required of them as to render satisfaction for their sins. This was called absolving, whereas in truth it meant binding worse than ever. Sins ought to be completely removed by the absolution; but they first imposed the task of rendering satisfaction for them, and thus force people away from faith and absolution, and induce them to rely upon then own works.

They should be taught thus, Behold, this word which I speak to you in God’s stead you must embrace in true faith. If you have not this faith postpone your confession; yet this does not mean that when your faith is too weak you are not to come and demand consolation and strength. If you cannot believe, tell the brother to whom you would confess of it, and say to him, I do indeed feel that I have need of confession and absolution, but I find I am too cold and too weak in faith. For to whom are you going to confide your weakness if not to God? And where can you find him except in your brother? He can strengthen and help you by his words. This is confessing in the right way; and would to God the whole world were brought far enough at least for everyone to confess that he cannot believe.

13. Let it be said now concerning Confession that everything ought to be free, so that each person attends without constraint, of his own accord. But what ought one to confess? Here is where our preachers in the past have pounded a great deal into us by means of the five senses, the seven deadly sins, the ten commandments, etc., thereby perplexing our consciences. But it should be, that you first of all feel that which weighs you down, and the sins that pain you most and burden your conscience you ought to declare and confess to your brother. Then you need not search long nor seek all kinds of sins; just take the ones that come to your mind, and say, This is how frail I am and how I have fallen; this is where I crave consolation and counsel. For confession ought to be brief. If you recall something that you have forgotten, it is not to trouble you; for you confessed not in order to do a good work, or because you were compelled, but in order to be comforted by the word of absolution. Moreover, you can easily confess to God in secret what was forgotten, or you can hear the absolution for it during the communion service.

We are therefore not to worry even if sins have been forgotten; though forgotten they are still forgiven; for God looks, not to the excellence or completeness of your confession, but to his Word and how you believe it.

So also the absolution does not state that some sins are forgiven and others not; on the contrary, it is a free proclamation declaring that God is merciful to you. But if God is merciful to you all your sins must be blotted out.

Therefore, hold fast to the absolution alone and not to your confession; whether or not you have forgotten anything makes no difference; as much as you believe so much are you forgiven. This is the way we must ever trust in God’s Word in spite of sin and an evil conscience.

III. OF THE LORD’S SUPPER.

14. In the third place we must speak of the Lord’s Supper. We said above that no one should be compelled to commune at any special time, but that this should be left free. It remains for us to speak of the two elements in the Lord’s Supper. I have already said that among us one element alone is not to be offered to the communicant; he who wants the Lord’s Supper should receive the whole of it. For we have preached and practiced this long enough and cannot assume that there should be any one unable to understand it; yet if there be one so dense, or claiming to be so weak that he cannot grasp the true meaning of it, we will excuse him; it is just as well that he remains away. For anyone to hear God’s Word so long, to have himself coddled like a child, and after all to continue saying, I do not understand, is no good sign. For it is impossible for you to hear so long and still be unenlightened; since then you remain blind it is better for you not to receive the Lord’s Supper. If you cannot grasp the Word that is bright, clear and certain, you need not grasp the sacrament; for the sacrament would be nothing if there were no Word.

Moreover, this Word has now resounded again and again throughout the whole world, so that even they who oppose it know it. These, however, are not weak but obdurate and hardened; they set their heads against the doctrine they hear us prove from the Scriptures with such clearness that they are unable to reply or establish the contrary; yet they simply remain in the Romish Church and try to force us to follow them. Therefore, it is out of the question for us any longer to yield or to endure them, since they defy us and maintain as their right what they teach and practice. Hence we wish to receive both elements in the Lord’s Supper, just because they wish to prevent us from having them. The thought of causing offense no longer applies to those people.

But if there were a locality where the Gospel had not been heard, it would be proper and Christian to adapt one’s self for a time to those who are weak; as also we did in the beginning when our cause was entirely new.

Now, however, since so much opposition is offered, and so many efforts at violent suppression are made, forbearance is out of the question.

15. It is, moreover, a fine example of God’s providential ruling and guidance that the Lord’s Supper is not devoid of persecution, for in instituting it he intended it to be a token and mark whereby we might be identified as Christians. For if we were without it, it would be impossible to tell where to find Christians, and who are Christians, and where the Gospel has borne fruit. But when we go to the Lord’s Supper people can see who they are that have heard the Gospel; moreover, they can observe whether we lead Christian lives. So this is a distinctive mark whereby we are recognized, whereby we also confess the name of God and show that we are not ashamed of his Word.

When now the pope sees me going to the Lord’s Supper and receiving both elements, the bread and the wine, according to the Gospel, it is a testimony that I am determined to cling to the Gospel. If then he grows angry and endeavors to slay me, it is just as it was in the early days of Christianity when the Christians confessed God in the same way by this token of the Lord’s Supper. Our bishops have forbidden both elements as contrary to God’s ordinance and command. If now we mean to confess Christ we must receive both elements, so that people may know that we are Christians and abide by the Word of God. If for this cause they slay us we ought to bear it, knowing that God will abundantly restore life to us again. Hence it is proper for us to suffer persecution on this account; otherwise, if everything were to go smoothly, there would be no real confession. In this way we remain in the right state, always expecting shame and disgrace, yea, even death for the Lord’s sake, as it was in the ancient church.

16. Furthermore, I said it is not enough to go to the Lord’s Supper, unless you are assured and know a defence to which you can refer as the foundation and reason that you do right in going; in order that you may be armed when attacked, and able to defend yourself with the Word of God against the devil and the world. On this account you dare not commune on the strength of another’s faith; for you must believe for yourself, even as I must, just as you must defend yourself as well as I must defend myself.

Therefore, above all you must know the words Christ used in instituting the Lord’s Supper. They are these: “Our Lord Jesus Christ, the same night in which he was betrayed, took bread; and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples and said, Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.” “After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, gave thanks and gave it to them, saying: Take, drink ye all of it; this cup is the New Testament in my blood, which is shed for you for the remission of sins: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.”

17. These are the words which neither our opponents nor Satan are able to deny, on them we must stand. Let them make whatever comments they please; we have the clear Word of God, saying, the bread is Christ’s body given for us; and the cup his blood shed for us. This he bids us do in remembrance of him; but the pope commands that it be not done.

Well, they say, we are only erring laymen, we do not understand, nor are we able to explain the words. But we reply: it is for us to explain just as much as it is for them; for we are commanded to believe in Christ, to confess our faith, and to keep all the commandments of God, just as well as they are. For we have the same God they claim to have. How then are we to believe without knowing and understanding his Word? Since I am commanded to believe I must know the words I am to believe; for how can I believe without the words? Moreover, it is my duty to stand firm, and I must know how to defend myself and how to refute the arguments to the contrary. This is how you can stop their mouths and bring them to silence.

My faith must be as good as yours, therefore I must have and must know the Word as well as you. For example the Evangelist here says, “Jesus took the cup and gave it to his disciples, saying, Drink ye all of it; this is my blood of the New Testament which is shed for you,” etc. These words are certainly clear enough; and there is no one so stupid that he cannot understand what is meant by, “Take, drink ye all of it; this is the cup of the New Testament in my blood” etc. Therefore we reply, Unless they prove to us that drinking here signifies something different from what all the world understands by the term, we shall stick to the interpretation, that we are all to drink of the cup. Let them bring forward what they please, custom or councils, we reply, God is older and greater than all things.

18. Likewise, the words are clear, “This do in remembrance of me.” Tell me, who is to remember the Lord? Is this said to the priests alone, and not to all Christians? And to remember the Lord, what is that but to preach him and to confess him? Now if we are all to remember the Lord in his Supper we must certainly be permitted to receive both elements, to eat the bread and to drink the cup; this surely no one can deny. Therefore, there is no use for you to cover up these words and tell us that we are not to know them.

If we are not to know them, what are you here for? You claim to be a shepherd, and therefore you ought to be here to teach these words and preach them to me, and now by your own rotten defence you are forced to confess your own shame and bite your own tongue, having so shamefully spoken in contradiction of the truth.

19. Thus you see how we are to understand the words of the institution of the Lord’s Supper and firmly hold to them; for in them all the virtue is centered, we all must know them, understand them, and cling to them in faith, so as to be able to defend ourselves and to repulse the foe. When you wish to go to the Lord’s Supper listen to the words spoken, and be assured that they contain the whole treasure on which you are to stand and rely, for they are really spoken to you. My body is given, my blood is shed, Christ declares. Why? Just for you to eat and drink? No; but for the remission of sins. This is what strikes you; and everything else that is done and said has no other purpose than that your sins may be forgiven. But if it is to serve for the forgiveness of sins, it must be able also to overcome death. For where sin is gone, there death is gone, and hell besides; where these are gone, all sorrow is gone and all blessedness has come.

20. Here, here the great treasure lies; on this keep your eyes and dismiss the follies which occupy and trouble the great schools when they inquire how the body of Christ can be present and concealed in so small a space.

Be not puzzled about the marvel, but cleave to the Word, and endeavor to obtain the benefit and fruit of the Lord’s Supper, namely that your sins be forgiven.

Therefore, you must act so that the words mean you. This will be when you feel the sting and terror of your sin, the assault of the flesh, the world, and the devil. At one time you are angry and impatient; at another you are assailed by the love of money and the cares of life etc.; so that you are constantly attacked, and at times even gross sins arise, and you fall and injure your soul. Thus you are a poor and wretched creature, afraid of death, despondent, and unable to be happy. Then it is time, and you have reason enough to go, make confession, and confide your distress to God, saying, Lord, thou hast instituted and left us the sacrament of thy body and blood that in it we may find the forgiveness of sin. I now feel that I need it.

I have fallen into sin. I am full of fear and despair. I am not bold to confess thy Word. I have all these failings, and these. Therefore, I come now that thou mayest heal, comfort, and strengthen me etc.

21. For this reason I made the statement that the Lord’s Supper is to be given only to him who is able to say that this is his condition; that is, he must state what troubles him, and must long to obtain strength and consolation by means of the Word and the symbol. Let him who is unable to use the Lord’s Supper in this way remain away, nor let him do like those who wretchedly torture themselves at this time, when they come to the sacrament, and have no idea what they are doing.

Now when you have received the Lord’s Supper, go forth and exercise your faith. The sacrament serves to the end that you may be able to say, I have the public declaration that my sins are forgiven; besides, my mouth has received the public symbol, this I can testify, as also I have testified before the devil and all the world. When death now and an evil conscience assail you, you can rely on this and defy the devil and sin, and thus strengthen your faith and gladden your conscience towards God, and amend your life day by day, where otherwise you would be slothful and cold, and the longer you remained away the more unfit you would be. But if you feel that you are unfit, weak and lacking in faith, where will you obtain strength but here? Do you mean to wait until you have grown pure and strong, then indeed you will never come and you will never obtain any benefit from the holy communion.

22. This is the right use of the Lord’s Supper, serving not to torture, but to comfort and gladden the conscience. For by instituting it for us, God did not intend it to be poison and torture to frighten us; this is what we made of it by our false doctrine, when we imagined we were to bring the offering of our piety to God, and hid the words that were to give comfort and salvation, strengthen our consciences, refresh, gladden and free them from every distress. This is the meaning of the Lord’s Supper, and we are to look upon it only as containing sweet grace, consolation, and life. It is poison and death to those who approach it with insolence, who feel no weakness, frailty, or distress to impel them, who act as if they were pure and pious from the start. The Lord’s Supper welcomes those who perceive their frailties and feel that they are not pious, yet would like to be. Thus it all depends on this feeling, for we are all frail and sinful, only we do not all confess it.

23. Let this suffice on how we ought to prepare ourselves to receive the communion and conduct ourselves toward it, namely, that we are to exercise and strengthen our faith by the words of the institution of the Supper which say that Christ’s body and blood are given and shed for the remission of sins. These words sufficiently show the benefit, fruit and use of the Lord’s Supper as far as partaking of it for ourselves is concerned.

But the second thought springing from the first is Christian love, and this also deserves attention. It is our duty to let the benefit and fruit of the Lord’s Supper become manifest, and we ought to show that we have received it with profit. We at present see it received throughout all the world in so many celebrations of the mass, but where do you see the least fruit following from it?

24. Now this is the fruit, that even as we have eaten and drunk the body and blood of Christ the Lord, we in turn permit ourselves to be eaten and drunk, and say the same words to our neighbor, Take, eat and drink; and this by no means in jest, but in all seriousness, meaning to offer yourself with all your life, even as Christ did with all that he had, in the sacramental words. As if to say, Here am I myself, given for you, and this treasure do I give to you; what I have you shall have; when you are in want, then will I also be in want; here, take my righteousness, life, and salvation, that neither sin, nor death, nor hell, nor any sorrow may overcome you; as long as I am righteous and alive, so long shall you also be righteous and alive.

These are the words he speaks to us; these we must take, and repeat them to our neighbor, not by the mouth alone, but by our actions, saying, Behold, my dear brother, I have received my Lord; he is mine, and I have more than enough and great abundance. Now you take what I have, it shall be yours, and I place it at your disposal. Is it necessary for me to die for you, I will even do that. The goal placed before us in the Lord’s Supper is that the attainment of such conduct toward our neighbor may appear in us.

25. Of course, it is true, we will not become so perfect that one places his soul and body, goods and honor at the disposal of the other. We still live in the flesh, and this is so deeply rooted in us that we are unable to furnish this symbol and evidence as perfectly as we should. On account of these our shortcomings Christ has instituted the Lord’s Supper for our training, that here we may obtain what we lack. For what will you do when you miss in yourself what we have described? You must even come and tell him, Behold, this is what I need. Thou dost give thyself to me so richly and abundantly, but I am unable to do likewise toward my neighbor; this I lament before thee, and I pray thee, let me grow rich and strong enough to accomplish it. Though it is impossible for us to reach such perfection, we are nevertheless to sigh for it, and not to despair when we fall short, only so the desire to obtain it continue in our hearts.

26. Yet the least part of love and devotion is not the sacrifice of my pride. I can indeed give my neighbor temporal goods and bodily service by my efforts and labor; I can also render him service by offering instruction and intercession; likewise I can visit and comfort him when he is sick and in sorrow, feed him when hungry, loose him when bound, etc. But to bear my neighbor’s weakness is far greater than all these. Yet with us the trouble will always be that we will not be able to do it as perfectly as Christ did. He is the bright, radiant sun without a single shadow, whereas our light, compared with this sun, is only a gleaming bit of lighted straw. Yonder a glowing oven full of fire and perfect love; and he is satisfied if we light only a little taper and endeavor somewhat to let love shine forth and burn.

This is the shortcoming we all see and feel in each other. But never let anyone conclude and say, This is not Christ. On the contrary, see what he did in the Gospel story when so often he suffered his disciples to stray and stumble, making his wisdom yield and serve their folly. He condemns them not, but endures their weakness and tells them in John 13:7-33: “Whither I go, ye cannot come.” Likewise, to Peter, “What I do, thou knowest not now.” By such love he abandons his righteousness, judgment, power, vengeance, and punishment, and his authority over us and our sins.

He could indeed condemn us for our folly, but all he does is to say, You do wrong, you do not know; yet casts us not away, but comforts us.

Therefore I said, it is no small evidence of love to be able to bear with one’s neighbor when he is weak in faith or in love.

27. On the other hand, Christ dealing so kindly with his disciples is no permission for us to approve of human weaknesses or of sin. For later he tells Peter, “What I do thou shalt understand hereafter.” Here he merely gives his weakness time and bears with it. It is as though he said, I will bear with your ignorance and weak faith for your sake and will spare you as long as you understand that you must do better, and intend to later on; not that you may grow idle and secure.

28. Therefore, when we have received the Lord’s Supper we must not allow ourselves to become indolent, but must be diligent and attentive to increase in love, aid our neighbor in distress, and lend him a helping hand when he suffers affliction and requires assistance. When you fail to do this you are not a Christian, or only a weak Christian, though you boast of having received the Lord and all that he is, in the Lord’s Supper.

29. If, however, you would be sure of partaking profitably of the Lord’s Supper, there is no better way than to observe your conduct toward your neighbor. You need not reflect on the great devoutness you experienced, or on the sweetness of the words in your heart. These indeed are good thoughts, but they will not give you assurance, they may deceive you.

However, you will be sure as to whether the sacrament is efficacious in your heart, if you watch your conduct toward your neighbor. If you discover that the words and the symbol soften and move you to be friendly to your enemy, to take an interest in your neighbor’s welfare, and to help him bear his suffering and affliction, then it is well.

On the other hand, if you do not find it so, you continue uncertain even if you were to commune a hundred times a day with devotions so great as to move you to tears for very joy; for wonderful devotions like this, very sweet to experience, yet as dangerous as sweet, amount to nothing before God. Therefore we must above all be certain for ourselves, as Peter writes in 2 Peter 1:10, “Give the more diligence to make your calling and election sure.” The Word and the sacrament are indeed certain in themselves; for God himself, together with all the angels and saints, testify to this; the question is in regard to yourself whether you furnish the same testimony. Therefore, even if all the angels and the whole world were to testify that you had received the Lord’s Supper profitably, it would be weaker testimony than that furnished by yourself. This you cannot reach unless you consider your conduct, whether it shines forth, works in you, and bears fruit.

30. Now when fruit fails to appear, when you feel that constantly you remain just as you were, and when you care nothing for your neighbor, then you have reason to take a different attitude in these things; for this is no good sign. Even Peter had to hear the same who was godly and ready to die and to do wonderful deeds for Christ. What then will you do? If you still experience evil desires, anger, impatience etc., you are again in trouble and that should urge and impel you to go to Christ and lay it before him, saying. I partake of the Lord’s Supper, still I remain as I was, without fruit.

I have received the great treasure, yet it remains inactive and dormant within me: This I lament before thee. As thou hast bestowed this treasure upon me, grant now that it may also produce fruit and a new life within me, manifesting themselves toward my neighbor. Now when you begin a little to prove this, you will continually grow stronger and break forth in good deeds to your neighbor more from day to day.

31. For this life is nothing more than a life of faith, of love, and of sanctified affliction. But these three will never be perfect in us while we live here on earth, and no one possesses them in perfection except Christ.

He is the sun and is set for our example, which we must imitate. For this reason there will always be found among us some that are weak, others that are strong, and again some that are stronger; these are able to suffer less, those more; and so they must all continue in the imitation of Christ.

For this life is a constant progress from faith to faith, from love to love, from patience to patience, and from affliction to affliction. It is not righteousness, but justification; not purity, but purification; we have not yet arrived at our destination, but we are all on the road, and some are farther advanced than others. God is satisfied to find us busy at work and full of determination. When he is ready he will come quickly, strengthen faith and love, and in an instant take us from this life to heaven. But while we live on earth we must bear with one another, as Christ also bore with us, seeing that none of us is perfect.

32. Christ has shown this to us not only by his own example and by his Word, but he has also pictured it to us in the form of the Sacrament of the Altar, namely, by means of the bread and the wine. We believe that the true body and blood of Christ is under the bread and wine, even as it is. Here we see one thing and believe another, which describes faith. For when we hear the Word and receive the Lord’s Supper we have merely a word and an act, yet by it we embrace life and every treasure, even God himself.

Likewise love is pictured in these signs and elements. First of all in the bread. For as long as the grains of wheat are in a pile before they are ground, each is a body separate for itself, and is not mingled with the others; but when they are ground they all become one body. The same thing takes place with the wine. As long as the berries are not crushed each retains its own form, but when they are crushed they all flow together and become one drink. You cannot say, this is the flour from this grain, or this is a drop from that berry; for each has entered the form of the other, and thus was formed one bread and one drink.

This is the interpretation of St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 10:17: “Seeing that we, who are many, are one bread, one body: for we all partake of the one bread.” We eat the Lord by the faith of the Word which the soul consumes and enjoys. In this way my neighbor also eats me: I give him my goods, body, and life and all that I have, and let him consume and use it in his want. Likewise, I also need my neighbor; I too am poor and afflicted, and suffer him to help and serve me in turn. Thus we are woven one into the other, helping one another even as Christ helped us. This is what it means spiritually to eat and drink one another.

33. Let me say now in conclusion in regard to the Lord’s Supper that when we have received it we ought to give heed to love, and in this way assure ourselves that we have received the sacrament profitably, and at the same time furnish evidence to others; so that we may not always come and still continue unchanged. Therefore, as I said, we must turn from our devotions and thoughts to our conduct toward our neighbor, and examine ourselves in this mirror with all seriousness. The sacrament is to act upon us so that we may be transformed and become different people. For God’s word and work do not intend to be idle, but are bound to produce great things, to wit, set us free from sin, death, and the devil, and every kind of fear, and make us servants even of the least among men on earth, and this without the slightest complaint on our part, rejoicing rather to find someone in need of our help, and fearing only lest after receiving so much we may not apply it all.

34. Whenever the Lord’s Supper fails to produce this result there is reason to fear it has wrought injury. Nevertheless, even if the result is not great, we are not to reject those that are imperfect and weak, but those that are indolent and insolent, who imagine they have done enough when they have partaken of the sacrament. A change must take place in you, and there must be evidence of it, then you will be able to perceive through the symbol that God is with you, and your faith will grow sure and strong. For you can easily feel whether you have grown more joyous and bold than you were before. Formerly the world seemed too narrow for us when we heard of death and thought of sin. If now we feel different it is not because of our own strength, for in the past we could not get so far, although we put forth greater exertions and endeavored to help ourselves by means of works.

Likewise, you can feel whether you are kind to him who injured you, and whether you are merciful to him who is sick. Thus you can discover, whether the Lord’s Supper is producing any fruit through your own life. If you experience nothing, go to God and tell him of your shortcomings and troubles; we all must do the same thing as long as we live, for, as we have said, not one of us is perfect. For the present let this suffice on this subject.

WELS Pastor Dave Wendt Facebook Page

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Facebook Page about WELS Pastor Threatening Gang Rape -

Monica Walsh WELS. Not surprised. I was born to parents who are WELS members (to this day)...and was raised in a WELS church and school. When I was in middle school (5th-8th grade) the Principal and math teacher would "date" some of the students. Get them drunk...take advantage of them...and no one said a thing about it. He went on to the High School where he continued to "date" students...having "contact" with them in the HS during school hours (and afterwards). I'm pretty sure out of the many people who knew about what was happening...or later...what happened...I'm the only one outraged over it...even now...30+ years later. He's in his 60s now and a very well respected WELS member in another state. He's probably still preying on girls...but no one wants to hear about it. WELS do not view girls/women as equals. I know what the WELS spokesMAN is saying to the police/reporters is that they (WELS) don't agree with what was said in the email...but I know behind closed doors they are agreeing with this nut job. They hate so many people.

Tiny songbird can fly the Atlantic, scientists confirm

Blackpoll warbler songbird, which weighs 4.2 ounces, can fly 1700 miles non-stop from New England to South America

WELS Pastor Dave Wendt offered to gang-rape Claire Van Fossen with some of his friends, because she would never call the police. Her writing set him off, apparently. Her LinkedIn profile.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/apr/1/david-wendt-wisconsin-pastor-resigns-after-email-t/?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS

WELS Pastor Dave Wendt graduated from Mequon in the Neanderthal Era.

Maundry (sic) Thursday

7:00 PM

Wendt is gone from the main websty but still in the posted newsletters.

Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/apr/1/david-wendt-wisconsin-pastor-resigns-after-email-t/?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS#ixzz3W80D6Afd 
Follow us: @washtimes on Twitter

Martin Luther College has been in decline, even before the NWC Anschluss.

Dave Wendt's apparently drunken tantrum is nothing new - but the object of his wrath, Claire Van Fosse, turned it into news. Now Wendt is portrayed as the typical white NRA guy.

Last night the Left was already feeding on the drunken, obscene rant that Dave Wendt sent to the activist blogger above.

Everything  about this scandal is typical of WELS and the ELS:

• Wendt admitted that it was his email account, but he denied writing the offer to gang-rape the young lady. Was he blaming family members for the email? Lacking the password, no one else can use his email. When will he give his computer to the police?
• His affluent congregation immediately erased Wendt from the web pages, photo and all - scrubbed, except he lives on in the newsletters. No apology - just erasing, erasing, erasing. It's still "Maundry Thursday" on the front page, so that tells us what matters at that parish, in that sect.
• His rather sparse Facebook page supported the nature of the attack, since the blogger questioned the behavior of police and he supported the police. No apology.
• His fury was directed at a stranger who disagreed with his position, but he expressed that with threats of violence, sarcasm, and obscene insults. How persuasive!
• Will Mark Schroeder apologize or just pretend it never happened.

Bar ministry - bar church. Where else but WELS?

Do WELS clergy objectify and abuse women? Ski drove a female staffer to resign with his infantile and drunken behavior, but she was supposed to tell everyone "No problems," just as Bishop Katie did a few months before.

When WELS kept supporting and lying for Ski, the victim's husband was sued in court by Glende, Ski, and two staffers for telling the truth.

Pope John Paul II Rose is featured at the Vatican Gardens. I ordered it first and got it near the end of planting.

I always wanted some white roses for contrast in arrangements, but I was underwhelmed by the ones I saw years ago, when I was growing our first roses. Our favorite rose at the time was Double Delight, because of color and fragrance. I had a special garden area in New Ulm with six Double Delights growing, daffodils coming up early around them in the wooden mulch.

Jackson and Perkins admonished me int the directions to soak first, so I dropped them in the rain barrel while I dug three places for them. Jackson and Perkins said "24 hours first," but I believe soaking them in their own beds is far kinder. In the wild, windy, and sunny West, the long soak may be worthwhile.

Besides that, I saw rain on radar and it came down for a good soak this morning. Nothing is better for gardening than rain and coffee.

My wake-up-out-of-dormancy rate for roses is 100%, so I am not motivated to do more than a preliminary soak. Small plants sent in the mail or drying out in supermarkets and hardware store displays should probably get a good long soak, more so than the dormant rose canes. I am using rainwater for ordinary plant soaks too.

Waking Up the Roses

1. The long soak is not enough, because the real test is the formation of root hairs and new roots. That is only going to happen with the roses in the soil.
2. The roots also have to establish friendships with the fungi and microbes in the soil. That is another reason for rapid planting.
3. Pruning the roots is often necessary to fit them in the dug out area. Pruning the canes a bit, once planted, will help spur growth. Both types of pruning help wake the rose up.
4. Watering the roses - and the canes - is essential in the first days, until the colored leaves (not the ghost leaves) appear. That means the rose is awake and growing. The canes want to be moist and clean, so spray them in the next few days.
5. Mushroom compost can be included in the planting soil or added on top. I usually have divots of sod left over. I often pry the loose soil out while planting, then use the grass wigs left over, upside down, for preliminary high nitrogen mulch. 
6. Newspaper fitted around the rose plant will discourage weeds and encourage earthworms.
7. If in doubt about soil microbes and earthworms, buy red wigglers and sprinkle them around gardening areas.

Some fungi increase the movement of phosphorus to roots, and mycorrhizal fungi deliver phosphorus, copper, zinc, molybdenum, and nitrogen to plant roots.   Growth-promoting rhizobacteria form symbiotic relationships with plants that aid in the synthesis of nitrogen.   Earthworm castings concentrate nutrients and create humus.    

Lowenfels, Jeff; (2013-05-07). Teaming with Nutrients: The Organic Gardener’s Guide to Optimizing Plant Nutrition (Kindle Locations 3681-3687). Timber Press. Kindle Edition. 

You Can Never Have Too Much

• Mulch
• Newspaper
• Mushroom compost
• Compost
• Rainwater stored
• Extra organic material - leaves, sticks, grass cuttings, garden trash after the harvest.
• Hospitality for birds, bees, and insects.

Class - what do these things have in common? They are all living or they have lived. They are crawling with life, bursting with energy to create growth. Rainwater carries useful nitrogen into the soil and washes dust and pollen out of the air.

They are either free or very inexpensive.

They are non-toxic.

Everyone loves Double Delight, whose color varies with climate.

Just as Schuller copied the New Age paganism that Normal Vincent Peale plagiarized, so has Jeske led a cadre of copyists to mimic the Asian philosophy of "powers of the universe." Thrivent pays him $170,000 a year to help funnel millions of dollars to ELCA and Planned Parenthood. Ski and Glende? Jeske alumni.

Robert Schuller, Crystal Cathedral megachurch founder, dies

Likewise, He will deny what we demand from Him, as He has for the apostate Lutherans and their idols - Robert Schuller, Mark Driscoll, and Ski.

The unrepentant liar, adulterer, drug addict and financial fraud spoke at the Thrivent convention. Did Jeske, Schroeder, Harrison, or Pope John the Malefactor object?

Queen Elizabeth roses have tall buds and make great bouquets.

When the storms follow each other, as they often do here, with moisture drawn up from the Gulf, we try to plan when lawn mowing can get done. I have to wear my mud loafers in the back yard, where we have ponds forming, one time after another. The loafers add weight as I walk, until I almost walk out of them.

After living in a desert valley for a decade, every rainstorm is a blessing to us, even when an explosion of pollen follows. The plants and trees are washed and invigorated by new deliveries of nitrogen and water.

Martin loved his sisters, and they adored him. Bethany loved the camera and looked right at it. Erin grinned for her mother in this photo.

I prepared a few more homes for roses yesterday. The ground was perfect from a morning rainshower, soft without being soaked. A true rosarian would have each spot marked by GPS, but I do not have the latest equipment. Instead, I used the tools of my Anglo-Saxon ancestors, a roll of clothes-line and a bag of fertilizer (mushroom compost).

I tied the wire to the fence at one end, stretched it parallel to the fence to my right, and used the bag to hold the wire in place. I spaced roses two tripod boxes apart. Tape measures are less than useful in the garden, and the box is difficult to lose in the grass.

No photo does justice to the color of the Queen Elizabeth rose.

I reserved a special spot for two Queen Elizabeth roses, in memory of Bethany Joan Marie and Erin Joy, our sainted daughters. We do that for each place we have lived, when roses are planted.

Erin Joy loved her swing.

The Queen Elizabeth rose is the first grandiflora developed. The bush can grow up to 10 feet tall and yet has the beautiful flowers of a hybrid tea rose, a hybrid of a hybrid, since hybrid tea roses  are a combination of the tea rose and the everbearing rose.

The Queen E has almost no fragrance, like many of the classic roses of that era - Peace, etc. Earlier the choice was fragrance or beauty, not both. Fragrant Cloud is a classic fragrance bomb, with enough in one bud to fill a room, but its brick color is not a choice for Valentine's Day.

Bethany rocked her red Christmas dress.

We like having our own roses because few flower shops or grocery stores have adequate blooms. The retail roses are often good for a day, grown for that impulse buy, that guilt offering. Nothing is more fun than hanging at a flower ship on Valentine's Day, with men rushing in and shouting, "Do you have any flowers left?"

Luther's Sermon - GOOD FRIDAY.
 

A SERMON ON HOW TO CONTEMPLATE CHRIST’S HOLY SUFFERINGS.

In 1519 many pamphlet editions of this sermon appeared and other editions without a date. In 1519 there were 15 editions, in 1520 two, in 1521 one, in 1522 one and in 1524 one. In 152I a Latin translation appeared at Wittenberg. It is one of the most frequently issued writings of Luther.

German text: Erlangen edition 11:150; Walch 11:785; St. Louis 11:574.

CONTENTS:

THE TRUE AND THE FALSE VIEWS OF CHRIST’S SUFFERINGS.
I. THE FALSE VIEW OF CHRIST’ S SUFFERINGS,WHICH ARISES: 1. When in our consideration of Christ’s sufferings we become angry at the Jews

2. When we consider them only in a superficial way and apply them to incredible things 2.

3. When we weep for Christ and misuse the mass 3.

II. THE TRUE VIEW OF CHRIST’ S SUFFERINGS.

A. Christ’s Sufferings Are To Be So Considered, That We Thereby Become Terror-Stricken Because Of The Great Wrath Of God On Account Of Sin And Sinners 4-11.THIS TAKES PLACE 1. When we know and believe that our sins caused such great suffering 4-5.

2. When we know and believe that we should have suffered in eternity the same that Christ suffered. a. The nature of this knowledge 6-7. b. The necessity of this knowledge 8-9. c. The fruit and benefit of this knowledge

10. d. That this knowledge is not our work, but God’s 9-11.

B. We Are To Consider Christ’s Sufferings In A Way That We Are Comforted By Them.THIS TAKES PLACE 1. When we do not let our sins remain in our consciences, but lay them upon Christ. a. The necessity of this 12-18. b. The nature of it 18. c. How we come to this 14.

2. When we reflect upon the love of God and of Christ that shines forth out of these sufferings 15.

C. We Are So To Consider Christ’s Sufferings That They May Serve Us As An Example Through Our Whole Life 16-17.

I. THE FALSE VIEWS OF CHRIST’S SUFFERINGS.

1. In the first place, some reflect upon the sufferings of Christ in a way that they become angry at the Jews, sing and lament about poor Judas, and are then satisfied; just like by habit they complain of other persons, and condemn and spend their time with their enemies. Such an exercise may truly be called a meditation not on the sufferings of Christ, but on the wickedness of Judas and the Jews.

2. In the second place, others have pointed out the different benefits and fruits springing from a consideration of Christ’s Passion. Here the saying ascribed to Albertus is misleading, that to think once superficially on the sufferings of Christ is better than to fast a whole year or to pray the Psalter every day, etc. The people thus blindly follow him and act contrary to the true fruits of Christ’s Passion; for they seek therein their own selfish interests. Therefore they decorate themselves with pictures and booklets, with letters and crucifixes, and some go so far as to imagine that they thus protect themselves against the perils of water, of fire, and of the sword, and all other dangers. In this way the suffering of Christ is to work in them an absence of suffering, which is contrary to its nature and character.

3. A third class so sympathize with Christ as to weep and lament for him because he was so innocent, like the women who followed Christ from Jerusalem, whom he rebuked, in that they should better weep for themselves and for their children. Such are they who run far away in the midst of the Passion season, and are greatly benefited by the departure of Christ from Bethany and by the pains and sorrows of the Virgin Mary, but they never get farther. Hence they postpone the Passion many hours, and God only knows whether it is devised more for sleeping than for watching.

And among these fanatics are those who taught what great blessings come from the holy mass, and in their simple way they think it is enough if they attend mass. To this we are led through the sayings of certain teachers, that the mass opere operati, non opere operantis, is acceptable of itself, even without our merit and worthiness, just as if that were enough. Nevertheless the mass was not instituted for the sake of its own worthiness, but to prove us, especially for the purpose of meditating upon the sufferings of Christ.

For where this is not done, we make a temporal, unfruitful work out of the mass, however good it may be in itself. For what help is it to you, that God is God, if he is not God to you? What benefit is it that eating and drinking are in themselves healthful and good, if they are not healthful for you, and there is fear that we never grow better by reason of our many masses, if we fail to seek the true fruit in them?

II. THE TRUE VIEW OF CHRIST’S SUFFERINGS.

4. Fourthly, they meditate on the Passion of Christ aright, who so view Christ that they become terror-stricken in heart at the sight, and their conscience at once sinks in despair. This terror-stricken feeling should spring forth, so that you see the severe wrath and the unchangeable earnestness of God in regard to sin and sinners, in that he was unwilling that his only and dearly beloved Son should set sinners free unless he paid the costly ransom for them as is mentioned in Isaiah 53:8: “For the transgression of my people was he stricken.” What happens to the sinner, when the dear child is thus stricken? An earnestness must be present that is inexpressible and unbearable, which a person so immeasurably great goes to meet, and suffers and dies for it; and if you reflect upon it real deeply, that God’s Son, the eternal wisdom of the Father, himself suffers, you will indeed be terror-stricken; and the more you reflect the deeper will be the impression.

5. Fifthly, that you deeply believe and never doubt the least, that you are the one who thus martyred Christ. For your sins most surely did it. Thus St. Peter struck and terrified the Jews as with a thunderbolt in Acts 2:36-37, when he spoke to them all in common: “Him have ye crucified,” so that three thousand were terror-stricken the same day and tremblingly cried to the apostles: “O beloved brethren what shall we do?” Therefore, when you view the nails piercing through his hands, firmly believe it is your work. Do you behold his crown of thorns, believe the thorns are your wicked thoughts, etc.

6. Sixthly, now see, where one thorn pierces Christ, there more than a thousand thorns should pierce thee, yea, eternally should they thus and even more painfully pierce thee. Where one nail is driven through his hands and feet, thou shouldest eternally suffer such and even more painful nails; as will be also visited upon those who let Christ’s sufferings be lost and fruitless as far as they are concerned. For this earnest mirror, Christ, will neither lie nor mock; whatever he says must be fully realized.

7. Seventhly, St. Bernard was so terror-stricken by Christ’s sufferings that he said: I imagined I was secure and I knew nothing of the eternal judgment passed upon me in heaven, until I saw the eternal Son of God took mercy upon me, stepped forward and offered himself on my behalf in the same judgment. Ah, it does not become me still to play and remain secure when such earnestness. is behind those sufferings. Hence he commanded the women: “Weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children.” Luke 23:28; and gives in the 31st verse the reason: “For if they do these things in the green tree, what shall be done in the dry?” As if to say: Learn from my martyrdom what you have merited and how you should be rewarded. For here it is true that a little dog was slain in order to terrorize a big one. Likewise the prophet also said: “All generations shall lament and bewail themselves more than him”; it is not said they shall lament him, but themselves rather than him. Likewise were also the apostles terror-stricken in Acts 2:27, as mentioned before, so that they said to the apostles: “O, brethren, what shall we do?” So the church also sings: I will diligently meditate thereon, and thus my soul in me will exhaust itself.

8. Eighthly, one must skillfully exercise himself in this point, for the benefit of Christ’s sufferings depends almost entirely upon man coming to a true knowledge of himself, and becoming terror-stricken and slain before himself. And where man does not come to this point, the sufferings of Christ have become of no true benefit to him. For the characteristic, natural work of Christ’s sufferings is that they make all men equal and alike, so that as Christ was horribly martyred as to body and soul in our sins, we must also like him be martyred in our consciences by our sins. This does not take place by means of many words, but by means of deep thoughts and a profound realization of our sins. Take an illustration: If an evil-doer were judged because he had slain the child of a prince or king, and you were in safety, and sang and played, as if you were entirely innocent, until one seized you in a horrible manner and convinced you that you had enabled the wicked person to do the act; behold, then you would be in the greatest straits, especially if your conscience also revolted against you.

Thus much more anxious you should be, when you consider Christ’s sufferings. For the evil doers, the Jews, although they have now judged and banished God, they have still been the servants of your sins, and you are truly the one who strangled and crucified the Son of God through your sins, as has been said.

9. Ninthly, whoever perceives himself to be so hard and sterile that he is not terror-stricken by Christ’s sufferings and led to a knowledge of him, he should fear and tremble. For it cannot be otherwise; you must become like the picture and sufferings of Christ, be it realized in life or in hell; you must at the time of death, if not sooner, fall into terror, tremble, quake and experience all Christ suffered on the cross. It is truly terrible to attend to this on your deathbed; therefore you should pray God to soften your heart and permit you fruitfully to meditate upon Christ’s Passion. For it is impossible for us profoundly to meditate upon the sufferings of Christ of ourselves, unless God sink them into our hearts. Further, neither this meditation nor any other doctrine is given to you to the end that you should fall fresh upon it of yourself, to accomplish the same; but you are first to seek and long for the grace of God, that you may accomplish it through God’s grace and not through your own power. For in this way it happens that those referred to above never treat the sufferings of Christ aright; for they never call upon God to that end, but devise out of their own ability their own way, and treat those sufferings entirely in a human and an unfruitful manner.

10. Tenthly, whoever meditates thus upon God’s sufferings for a day, an hour, yea, for a quarter of an hour, we wish to say freely and publicly, that it is better than if he fasts a whole year, prays the Psalter every day, yea, than if he hears a hundred masses. For such a meditation changes a man’s character and almost as in baptism he is born again, anew. Then Christ’s suffering accomplishes its true, natural and noble work, it slays the old Adam, banishes all lust, pleasure and security that one may obtain from God’s creatures; just like Christ was forsaken by all, even by God.

11. Eleventhly, since then such a work is not in our hands, it happens that sometimes we pray and do not receive it at the time; in spite of this one should not despair nor cease to pray. At times it comes when we are not praying for it, as God knows and wills; for it will be free and unbound: then man is distressed in conscience and is wickedly displeased with his own life, and it may easily happen that he does not know that Christ’s Passion is working this very thing in him, of which perhaps he was not aware, just like the others so exclusively meditated on Christ’s Passion that in their knowledge of self they could not extricate themselves out of that state of meditation. Among the first the sufferings of Christ are quite and true, among the others a show and false, and according to its nature God often turns the leaf, so that those who do not meditate on the Passion, really do meditate on it; and those who hear the mass, do not hear it; and those who hear it not, do hear it.

III. THE COMFORT OF CHRIST’S SUFFERINGS.

12. Until the present we have been in the Passion week and have celebrated Good Friday in the right way: now we come to Easter and Christ’s resurrection. When man perceives his sins in this light and is completely terror-stricken in his conscience, he must be on his guard that his sins do not thus remain in his conscience, and nothing but pure doubt certainly come out of it; but just as the sins flowed out of Christ and we became conscious of them, so should we pour them again upon him and set our conscience free. Therefore see well to it that you act not like perverted people, who bite and devour themselves with their sins in their heart, and run here and there with their good works or their own satisfaction, or even work themselves out of this condition by means of indulgences and become rid of their sins; which is impossible, and, alas, such a false refuge of satisfaction and pilgrimages has spread far and wide.

13. Thirteenthly. Then cast your sins from yourself upon Christ, believe with a festive spirit that your sins are his wounds and sufferings, that he carries them and makes satisfaction for them, as Isaiah 53:6 says: “Jehovah hath laid on him the iniquity of us all;” and St. Peter in his first Epistle 1 Peter 2:24: “Who his own self bare our sins in his body upon the tree” of the cross; and St. Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:21: “Him who knew no sin was made to be sin on our behalf; that we might become the righteousness of God in him.” Upon these and like passages you must rely with all your weight, and so much the more the harder your conscience martyrs you. For if you do not take this course, but miss the opportunity of stilling your heart, then you will never secure peace, and must yet finally despair in doubt. For if we deal with our sins in our conscience and let them continue within us and be cherished in our hearts, they become much too strong for us to manage and they will live forever. But when we see that they are laid on Christ and he has triumphed over them by his resurrection and we fearlessly believe it, then they are dead and have become as nothing. For upon Christ they cannot rest, there they are swallowed up by his resurrection, and you see now no wound, no pain, in him, that is, no sign of sin. Thus St. Paul speaks in Romans 4:25, that he was delivered up for our trespasses and was raised for our justification; that is, in his sufferings he made known our sins and also crucified them; but by his resurrection he makes us righteous and free from all sin, even if we believe the same differently.

14. Fourteenthly. Now if you are not able to believe, then, as I said before, you should pray to God for faith. For this is a matter in the hands of God that is entirely free, and is also bestowed alike at times knowingly, at times secretly, as was just said on the subject of suffering.

15. But now bestir yourself to the end: first, not to behold Christ’s sufferings any longer; for they have already done their work and terrified you; but press through all difficulties and behold his friendly heart, how full of love it is toward you, which love constrained him to bear the heavy load of your conscience and your sin. Thus will your heart be loving and sweet toward him, and the assurance of your faith be strengthened. Then ascend higher through the heart of Christ to the heart of God, and see that Christ would not have been able to love you if God had not willed it in eternal love, to which Christ is obedient in his love toward you; there you will find the divine, good father heart, and, as Christ says, be thus drawn to the Father through Christ. Then will you understand the saying of Christ in John 3:16: “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son,” etc. That means to know God aright, if we apprehend him not by his power and wisdom, which terrify us, but by his goodness and love; there our faith and confidence can then stand unmovable and man is truly thus born anew in God.

16. Sixteenthly. When your heart is thus established in Christ, and you are an enemy of sin, out of love and not out of fear of punishment, Christ’s sufferings should also be an example for your whole life, and you should meditate on the same in a different way. For hitherto we have considered Christ’s Passion as a sacrament that works in us and we suffer; now we consider it, that we also work, namely thus: if a day of sorrow or sickness weighs you down, think, how trifling that is compared with the thorns and nails of Christ. If you must do or leave undone what is distasteful to you: think, how Christ was led hither and thither, bound and a captive. Does pride attack you: behold, how your Lord was mocked and disgraced with murderers. Do unchastity and lust thrust themselves against you: think, how bitter it was for Christ to have his tender flesh torn, pierced and beaten again and again. Do hatred and envy war against you, or do you seek vengeance: remember how Christ with many tears and cries prayed for you and all his enemies, who indeed had more reason to seek revenge.

If trouble or whatever adversity of body or soul afflict you, strengthen your heart and say: Ah, why then should I not also suffer a little since my Lord sweat blood in the garden because of anxiety and grief? That would be a lazy, disgraceful servant who would wish to lie in his bed while his lord was compelled to battle with the pangs of death.

17. Behold, one can thus find in Christ strength and comfort against all vice and bad habits. That is the right observance of Christ’s Passion, and that is the fruit of his suffering, and he who exercises himself thus in the same does better than by hearing the whole Passion or reading all masses. And they are called true Christians who in corporate the life and name of Christ into their own life, as St. Paul says in Galatians 5:24: “And they that are of Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with the passions and the lusts thereof.” For Christ’s Passion must be dealt with not in words and a show, but in our lives and in truth. Thus St. Paul admonishes us in Hebrews 12:3: “For consider him that hath endured such gainsaying of sinners against himself, that ye wax not weary, fainting in your souls;” and St.

Peter in his 1 Epistle 1 Peter 4:1: “As Christ suffered in the flesh, arm ye yourselves also with the same mind.” But this kind of meditation is now out of use and very rare, although the Epistles of St. Paul and St. Peter are full of it. We have changed the essence into a mere show, and painted the meditation of Christ’s sufferings only in letters and on walls.

Norma Boeckler

Luther's Second Sermon for EASTER SUNDAY. Mark 16:1-8


This sermon is also not found in edition c.

German text: Erlangen edition vol. II, 213; Walch edition vol. II, 849; St.

Louis edition vol. II, 622.

CONTENTS:

OF CHRIST’S RESURRECTION.
I. IF CONSIDERED AS TO ITS HISTORICAL FACTS,THEN NOTE:

1. The time of the resurrection of Christ 1-3.

* Why Christ did not remain longer than three days In the grave

2. The knightly courage of the women, who appeared at Christ’s grave after his resurrection. a. This heroic courage in itself 4. b. Its spiritual meaning 5.

II. IF CONSIDERED AS TO ITS BENEFITS AND FRUITS,THEN NOTE:

1. The nature of this fruit and benefit 6-7f.

2. How we become partakers of this fruit 8-10.

3. An admonition to understand and profess the fruit 11.

4. An objection that is made to this fruit; and the answer. a. The objection 12. b. The answer 13-17.

I. THE STORY OF CHRIST’S RESURRECTION.

1. In the first place we shall briefly examine the text of this narrative, and afterwards speak of the benefits of the resurrection of Christ, and how we should build upon it. The text reads: “And when the sabbath was past.”

Here we must remember Mark writes of the sabbath according to the custom of the Hebrews, for according to the Jewish reckoning the day began in the evening and lasted until the evening of the next day, as the first chapter of Genesis says: “And there was evening and there was morning, one day,” “a second day,” “a third day,” and so forth. Thus the first and greatest sabbath began on the evening of the day when Christ was crucified, that is to say at the time of sunset on the evening of Friday. Our reckoning conveys the wrong sense. Yesterday was the great sabbath, when Christ lay in the grave; in addition to this the Jews had seven full days which they celebrated and all of which they called sabbaths, counting them from the first holiday after the great sabbath and calling it prima sabbathorum (first of the sabbaths), and the third holiday secundam sabbathorum (second of the sabbaths), and so forth. On these days they ate only wafers and unleavened bread, for which reason they are also called by the Evangelist the days of unleavened bread. From this we must conclude that Christ rose before sunrise and before the angel descended in the earthquake. Afterwards the angel only came to open the empty grave, etc., as has been clearly described by the Evangelists.

2. The question now arises: How can we say that he rose on the third day, since he lay in the grave only one day and two nights? According to the Jewish calculation it was only a day and a half; how shall we then persist in believing there were three days? To this we reply that he was in the state of death for at least a part of all three days. For he died at about two o’clock on Friday and consequently was dead for about two hours on the first day.

After that night he lay in the grave all day, which is the true sabbath. On the third day, which we commemorate now, he rose from the dead and so remained in the state of death a part of this day, just as if we say that something occurred on Easter-day, although it happens in the evening, only a portion of the day. In this sense Paul and the Evangelists say that he rose on the third day.

3. For this period and no longer Christ was to lie in the grave, so that we might suppose that his body remained naturally uncorrupted and that decomposition had not yet set in. He came forth from the grave so soon that we might presume that corruption had not yet taken place according to the course of nature; for a corpse can lie no longer than three days before it begins to decompose. Therefore Christ was to rise on the third day, before he saw corruption.

4. The great longing and love of the women for the Lord must also be particularly noted here, so that unadvised and alone they go early to the grave, not thinking of the great stone which was rolled before the tomb.

They might have thought of this and taken a man with them. But they act like timid and sorrowing persons, and therefore they go on their way without even thinking of the most necessary things. They do not even think of the watchers who were clad in armor, nor of the wrath of Pilate and the Jews, but boldly they freely risk it and alone they venture on their way.

What urged these good women to hazard life and body? It was nothing but the great love they bore to the Lord, which had sunk so deeply into their hearts that for his sake they would have risked a thousand lives. Such courage they had not of themselves, but here the power of the resurrection of Christ was revealed, whose Spirit makes these women, who by nature are timid, so bold and courageous that they venture to do things which might have daunted a man.

5. These women also show us a beautiful example of a spiritual heart that undertakes an impossible task, of which the whole world would despair.

Yet a heart like this stands firm and accomplishes it, not thinking the task impossible. So much we say for the present on this narrative, and now let us see what are the fruits and benefits of the resurrection of Christ.

II. THE FRUITS AND BENEFITS OF THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.

6. St. Paul writes in Romans 4:25 as follows: “Christ was delivered up for our trespasses, and was raised for our justification.” Paul is indeed the man who extols Christ in a masterly manner, telling us exactly why and for what purpose he suffered and how we should conform ourselves to his sufferings, namely, that he died for our sins. This is a correct interpretation of the sufferings of Christ, by which we may profit. And as it is not sufficient to know and believe that Christ has died, so it will not suffice to know and believe that he rose with a transfigured body and is now in a state of joy and blessedness, no longer subject to mortality, for all this would profit me nothing or very little. But when I come to understand the fact that all the works God does in Christ are done for me, nay, they are bestowed upon and given to me, the effect of his resurrection being that I also will arise and live with him; that will cause me to rejoice. This must be brought home to our hearts, and we must not merely hear it with the ears of our body nor merely confess it with our mouth.

7. You have heard in the story of the Passion how Christ is portrayed as our exemplar and helper, and that he who follows him and clings to him receives the Spirit, who will enable him also to suffer. But the words of Paul are more Christian and should come closer home to our hearts and comfort us more, when he says: “Christ was raised for our justification.”

Here the Lamb is truly revealed, of whom John the Baptist testifies, when he says in John 1:29: “Behold, the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world.” Here is fulfilled that which was spoken to the serpent: “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed: he shall bruise thy head,” which means that for all those who believe in him, hell, death, and the devil and sin have been destroyed. In the same manner the promise is fulfilled to-day which God gave to Abraham, when he said in Genesis 22:18: “In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.” Here Christ is meant, who takes away our curse and the power of sin, death and the devil.

8. All this is done, I say, by faith. For if you believe that by this seed the serpent has been slain, then it is slain for you; and if you believe that in this seed all nations are to be blessed, then you are also blessed. For each one individually should have crushed the serpent under foot and redeemed himself from the curse, which would have been too difficult, nay impossible for us. But now it has been done easily, namely, by Christ, who has crushed the serpent once, who alone is given as a blessing and benediction, and who has caused this Gospel to be published throughout the world, so that he who believes, accepts it and clings to it, is also in possession of it, and is assured that it is as he believes. For in the heart of such a man the Word becomes so powerful that he will conquer death, the devil, sin and all adversity, like Christ himself did. So mighty is the Word that God himself would sooner be vanquished than that his Word should be conquered.

9. This is the meaning of the words by St. Paul: “Christ was raised for our justification.” Here Paul turns my eyes away from my sins and directs them to Christ, for if I look at my sins, they will destroy me. Therefore I must look unto Christ who has taken my sins upon himself, crushed the head of the serpent and become the blessing. Now they no longer burden my conscience, but rest upon Christ, whom they desire to destroy. Let us see how they treat him. They hurl him to the ground and kill him. O God; where is now my Christ and my Savior? But then God appears, delivers Christ and makes him alive; and not only does he make him alive, but he translates him into heaven and lets him rule over all. What has now become of sin. There it lies under his feet. If I then cling to this, I have a cheerful conscience like Christ, because I am without sin. Now I can defy death, the devil, sin and hell to do me any harm. As I am a child of Adam, they can indeed accomplish it that I must die. But since Christ has taken my sins upon himself, has died for them, has suffered himself to be slain on account of my sins, they can no longer harm me; for Christ is too strong for them, they cannot keep him, he breaks forth and overpowers them, ascends into heaven (takes sin and sorrow captive, Ed. 1531), and rules there over all throughout eternity. Now I have a clear conscience, am joyful and happy and am no longer afraid of this tyrant, for Christ has taken my sins away from me and made them his own. But they cannot remain upon him; what then becomes of them? They must disappear and be destroyed. This then is the effect of faith. He who believes that Christ has taken away our sin, is without sin, like Christ himself, and death, the devil and hell are vanquished as far as he is concerned and they can no longer harm him.

10. Here we also refer to the passage in Hosea 13:14, which Paul quotes in reference to the victory that Christ has won by his resurrection and by which he has conquered sin, death, hell and all our enemies. Paul says that death is swallowed up in this victory, and he defies death with these words: “O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?”

Just as if Paul would say: O death, where are thy teeth? Come, bite off one of my fingers. Thou formerly hadst a spear, what has become of it now?

Christ has taken it from thee. Death, where is now thy spear, etc.? Sin, where is now the edge of thy sword and thy power? Paul says that the power of sin is the law. The more clearly we understand the law, the more sin oppresses and stings us. For this reason Paul says that Christ has completely destroyed and annihilated the spear and whetstone of death.

Now, this Gospel he has not taken with him into heaven, but he caused it to be preached throughout the world, so that for him who believes in Christ, spear and whetstone, nay, sin and death, should be destroyed. This is the true Gospel, which bestows life, strength, power and marrow, and of which all the passages of Scripture speak.

11. Therefore seek and learn to know Christ aright, for the whole Scriptures confer upon us the righteousness of the true knowledge of Christ. But this must be brought about by the Holy Spirit. Let us therefore pray God that his Gospel may prosper, that we all may truly learn to know Christ and thus rise with him and be honored by God as he was honored.

12. The question now arises: If Christ has taken away death and our sins by his resurrection and has justified us, why do we then still feel death and sin within us? For our sins torment us still, we are stung by our conscience, and this evil conscience creates the fear of hell.

13. To this I reply: I have often said before that feeling and faith are two different things. It is the nature of faith not to feel, to lay aside reason and close the eyes, to submit absolutely to the Word, and follow it in life and death. Feeling however does not extend beyond that which may be apprehended by reason and the senses, which may be heard, seen, felt and known by the outward senses. For this cause feeling is opposed to faith and faith is opposed to feeling. Therefore the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews writes of faith: “Now faith is assurance of things hoped for, a conviction of things not seen.” For if we would see Christ visibly in heaven, like the visible sun, we would not need to believe it. But since Christ died for our sins and was raised for our justification, we cannot see it nor feel it, neither can we comprehend it with our reason. Therefore we must disregard our feeling and accept only the Word, write it into our heart and cling to it, even though it seems as if my sins were not taken from me, and even though I still feel them within me. Our feelings must not be considered, but we must constantly insist that death, sin and hell have been conquered, although I feel that I am still under the power of death, sin and hell. For although we feel that sin is still in us, it is only permitted that our faith may be developed and strengthened, that in spite of all our feelings we accept the Word, and that we unite our hearts and consciences more and more to Christ. Thus faith leads us quietly, contrary to all feeling and comprehension of reason, through sin, through death and through hell.

Then we shall see salvation before our eyes, and then we shall know perfectly what we have believed, namely, that death and all sorrow have been conquered.

14. Take as an illustration the fish in the water. When they are caught in the net, you lead it quietly along, so that they imagine they are still in the water; but when you draw them to the shore, they are exposed and begin to struggle, and then they first feel they are caught. Thus it also happens with souls that are caught with the Gospel, which Christ compares with a net, Matthew 13:47. When the heart has been conquered, the Word unites this poor heart to Christ and leads it gently and quietly from hell and from sin, although the soul still feels sin and imagines to be still under its power. Then a conflict begins, the feelings struggling against the Spirit and faith, and the Spirit and faith against our feelings; and the more faith increases, the more our feelings diminish, and vice versa. We have still sins within us, as for instance pride, avarice, anger and so forth, but only in order to lead us to faith, so that faith may increase from day to day, and the man become finally a thorough Christian and keep the true sabbath, consecrating himself to Christ entirely. Then the conscience must become calm and satisfied and all the surging waves of sin subside. For as upon the sea one billow follows and buffets the other, as though they would destroy the shore, yet they must disappear and destroy themselves, so also our sins strive against us and would fain bring us to despair, but finally they must desist, grow weary and disappear.

15. In the second place, death is still at our elbow. It also is to exercise the faith of him who believes that death has been killed and all his power taken away. Now, reason feels that death is still at our elbow and is continually troubling us. He who follows his feelings will perish, but he who clings to the Word with his heart will be delivered. Now, if the heart clings to the Word, reason will also follow; but if reason follows, everything will follow, desire and love and all that is in man. Yea, we desire that all may come to the point when they may consider death to be dead and powerless. But this cannot come to pass until the old man, that is the old Adam, be entirely destroyed, and meanwhile that process has been going on of which Christ speaks in Matthew 13:33, where he compares the kingdom of God to leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal. For even if the kneading has begun, the meal is not yet thoroughly leavened. So, it is here. Although the heart clings to the belief that death and hell are destroyed, yet the leaven has not yet worked through it entirely. For it must penetrate and impregnate all the members of the body, until everything becomes leavened and pure, and there remains nothing but a pure faith. This will not be brought about before the old man is entirely destroyed; then all that is in man is Christlike from center to circumference.

16. These two things, sin and death, therefore remain with us to the end that we might cultivate and exercise our faith, in order that it may become more perfect in our heart from day to day and finally break forth, and all that we are, body and soul, become more Christlike. For when the heart clings to the Word, feelings and reasoning must fail. Then in the course of time the will also clings to the Word, and with the will everything else, our desire and love, till we surrender ourselves entirely to the Gospel, are renewed and leave the old sin behind. Then there comes a different light, different feelings, different seeing, different hearing, acting and speaking, and also a different outflow of good works. Now, our scholastics and papists have taught an external piety; they would command the eyes not to see, and the ears not to hear, and would put piety into our hearts from the outside. Ah, how far this is from the truth! But it comes in this way: When the heart and conscience cling to the Word in faith, they overflow in works, so that, when the heart is holy, all the members become holy, and good works follow naturally.

17. This is signified by the sabbath that was to be hallowed and on which the Lord lay quietly in the grave. It signifies that we should rest from all our works, should not stir, nay, should not allow any sin to stir within us, but we should firmly believe that death, hell, sin and the devil are destroyed by the death of Christ, and we are righteous, pious, holy and therefore contented, experiencing no longer any sin. Then all the members are calm and quiet, being convinced that sin and death are vanquished and prostrated. But this cannot be brought about, as I have said, until this impotent, wretched body and the old Adam are destroyed. Therefore it is indeed necessary that we are required to keep this sabbath. For as Christ lies in the grave on the sabbath, never feels nor moves, so it must be with us, as we have heard: Our feelings and actions must cease. And I say again that this cannot be accomplished before the old Adam is annihilated.

Nevertheless we still experience sin and death within us, wrestle with them and fight against them. You may tie a hog ever so well, but you cannot prevent it from grunting (until it is strangled and killed Ed. 1531). Thus it is with the sins in our flesh. As they are not yet entirely conquered and killed, they are still active, but when death comes, they must also die, and then we are perfect Christians and pure, but not before. This is the reason why we must die, namely, that we may be entirely freed from sin and death.

These words on the fruits of the resurrection of Christ may suffice for the present, and with them we will close. Let us pray God for grace that we may understand them and learn to know Christ aright.

Doug Lindee Intrepid Lutherans - what do you do with a certified letter kicking you out of your congregation?

FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015

I AM the Resurrection and the Life

Easter

Barbara Streisand is our new lavender rose. Many celebrity named roses are especially attractive. This one leans to the Left, so I had to straighten the cane with extra soil.

Our friend got married a little too early in the spring to have roses from our garden. Last year's plants are fully leafed out and ready to bud. We have one little rose that buds and bursts into yellow roses all at once, then fades away as fast. That was a bargain rose and certainly earns its money in showing off beauty.

The last big shipment was set to arrive during Holy Week - how thoughtful - and in the midst of various rainstorms. I found time to dig holes one day and planted another day. The worst part was softening front yard holes with water that did not drain down. That turned into a mud wrestling match that I lost. I will put extra mushroom compost there to help the earthworms tunnel and soften the clay. Normally when I use a clump of sod the next day, the soil can be crumbled, but this was more like hardened rubber cement.

The large shipment took a long time to arrive by truck from California, about four or five days wrapped in plastic and damp rose diapers. I took their advice and soaked them in rainwater until they were all planted. There is never enough rainwater, so I poured two barrels together and filled the second one with city water. The directions said "Add a little bleach" and I thought, "Springdale did that for me."

A bright spot was planting 10 bargain roses from Gurney's. Their net cost was $5 each, roughly the price of one rose at a flower shop on Valentine's Day. The soil was easy to dig and mold, and the roses were very large and strong, more like three year roses. I suspect the company was unloading roses that were getting too big to sell commercially. One was a monster, the biggest I have handled. Like the ones we got from TV last year, this had oddball names and were not the high profile roses. Even those famous roses have trouble staying as best sellers.

We had our own Lazarus rose. I dug it out because I was sure it was gone, my only loss from last year. However, I had pruned it bad hard, just in case. Once dug up, it showed up two sprouting canes, so I put it around the corner. The name from the TV rose special was still on it - Falling in Love.

Mr. Lincoln sprouted real leaves 24 hours after planting, the fastest exit from dormancy I have seen.

Heeling In
One answer for roses coming at the wrong time is to soak them 24 hours (not my plan). Another laugh-provoking idea was buying Vitamin B-1 to help them get over their shock and bring them out of dormancy.

Another one is to heel them in, digging a shallow hole and covering them with damp soil. That violates the Maynard G. Krebs Prime Directive - adding unnecessary work. Sassy is an Australian Heeler, but she only supervises.

I might as well dig them in crudely in the right spot. I can garnish their home later with mushroom compost, newspaper, and wood mulch. That is what I did with most of them, because time was shrunken by the weather and various things to do.

Mr. Lincoln has so many good characteristics that rose growers still demand it. Mrs. Ichabod asked for plenty of them, and Mrs. Gardener loves red roses.

First Steps in the Rose Being Established
The rose bush needs to be planted in a reasonably good spot, with sun and good drainage for the soil.

The roots and canes need to be watered daily for the next two weeks. The root hairs need the water to grow and set up shop with the microbes (not inorganic fertilizer) that will feed it and promote healthy growth. The canes have dried out during shipping, so they need a daily shower too.

If roses seem to remain dormant, without sending out new, green/red leaves, they can be awakened with some sharp pruning. I love the diagrams people provide, because each rose is different. The idea is to cut away crossing canes and dead wood, blackened canes, etc. The rose wakes up with pruning and the roots grow faster.

Tropicana is famous for its day-glo color and for lasting two weeks in a vase.

Daily Rain Possible the Next Week
We had some plans for some limb pruning this afternoon. Our landscaper neighbor loved the pruning saw I bought for the occasion. He was already planning more work with it after trying it once. He had the maple tree pruned in five minutes.

The backyard will probably not get attention during the next week, since large zones of rain will move across Arkansas. We had a steady rain this morning. Sometimes we only get a mist. The rain is leveraging all my previous work:

1. The old rose garden.
2. The expansion.
3. The rose garden for Mrs. Wright.
4. The rose garden for Mrs. Gardener.
5. The carrots, peas, asparagus, beans, and sunflowers planted.
6. Crepe myrtle and butterfly bushes.
7. Upcoming Giant Alium and Crown Imperial bulbs.
8. Bee balm and honeysuckle vines.
9. Tomatoes.

Last year in the spring I had grass and weeds. Bargain roses and rototiller-phobia got me involved with a late planted rose garden in front of the porch, Jackson Mulch and earthworms feeding the roses, toxin-free. I added Knockout Roses and had great results with them, especially the red ones.

Peace remains a favorite.

Chicago Peace is harder to find, but I found it.

Pink Peace completed the Peace Trifecta.

"Naow I realize - WELS is anti-Law and legalistic at the same time!"

Doug Lindee, Intrepid Lutherans:
If the truth be told, however, we started this practice of home worship years before finally leaving the WELS. We began to notice that there was a consistent dearth of Law in the preaching and teaching, not only of Faith Church, but in every WELS church we visited. The emphasis on the Gospel was so smothering that the Law, if present at all, was virtually indiscernible. While both of us had grown up within pop-church Evanglicalism and among confessing Pietists, were fully acquainted with the Law, and personally found Law-less Gospel preaching a sufficient (and welcome) balance to the smotheringly Gospel-less Law preaching we had been reared with, the impact on our children, who, over a decade had only become familiar with the Gospel, was unmistakably negative. Having literally no acquaintance with the Law, they failed to place any real significance on the Gospel, taking for granted that they were already forgiven and righteous regardless of what they do, as if they were entitled to it. The result was behaviour issues of various kinds, a general disregard for God’s Word, and a failure to respond to correction which was drawn from it. We appealed at various times to our WELS pastors for more Law in their preaching, so that there would be a more discernible balance between Law and Gospel, but when our requests were dismissed – sometimes with ridicule for being “lovers of the Law” – we realized that there would be no changing their nearly Law-less Gospel preaching. 

Conventional WELS wisdom, from Jeff Schone, an icon of men's fashion in Lower Slobovia.

***

GJ - More people are realizing the inherently corrupt nature of the WELS sect, since 

• Bishop Martin Stephan was hauled into court 
• for sexual deviancy (young women) and financial issues, 
• Put under house arrest 
• Found officers posted in his home, and 

Why do the bright, sincere, well read people keep leaving WELS?

Fox Valley WELS really hates this graphic, so they try messing with it on the blog. I know how they do that, so here it is again.

If your dogma is rank, count on Zank, endorsed by Joel Lillo.

The Milwaukee Special is right on time.

http://shatteredpulpit.blogspot.com/

One more WELS blog has been erased. Shattered Pulpit described the workings of a drunken lech of a pastor in a boozy congregation - where they held meetings at a bar.

I copied much of the material verbatim, which you can find by clicking on the label Shattered Pulpit blog.

Any blog that tells the truth about WELS will be erased in time. I am the archivist.

Someone sent this to me.